Art Institute of ChicagoPublic domain

An Elegant Parody of the Six Poetic Immortals (Furyu yatsushi rokkasen): The Priest Kisen

Chôbunsai Eishi · c. 1793

Provenance

Ownership history

Frederic May (1851–1918), Washington, D.C.; sold, American Art Galleries, New York, May 6–10, 1918, to Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858–1937), Chicago; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1925.

Recorded by Art Institute of Chicago.

Exhibitions

Didactic:
THE DIETY POET:
SUGAWARA MICHIZANE (845–903)
Sugawara Michizane advanced in court positions under
Emperor Uda (reigned 888–97), assuming many functions formerly performed by the powerful Fujiwara clan. When the new Emperor Daigo succeeded Uda, the Fujiwara undermined Michizane’s influence, such that he was sent into exile in 901 and died two years later. A series of natural disasters then occurred throughout Japan; many believed these were sanctified by the poet’s angry spirit. In response, a shrine was built where the poet’s spirit and literary works were sanctified. In the twelfth century, Michizane was the first Japanese to be recognized as a deity, given the name Tenjin Sama, god of scholarship and literature. In the same era, Fujiwara no Teika included him as the twenty-fourth poet in One Hundred Poems by One Hundred Poets.

Comparables